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Longmont workers to distribute flood preparedness info

By John Fryar Longmont Times-Call

Posted:
06/02/2011 11:58:03 PM MDT

Updated:
06/02/2011 11:59:24 PM MDT

Be prepared

Prepare an emergency evacuation kit. A one-gallon plastic bag should hold prescription medications and copies of such important documents as driver`s licenses and insurance and financial information. A thumb drive of important family photos could be included.

Get to know your neighbors. They, or you, may need additional help during an emergency.

Make a family plan. Talk to children and other family members about what to do, where to meet and how to contact each other during an emergency.

LONGMONT -- To help Longmont residents and businesses prepare for potential spring and summer flooding, city employees will be knocking on doors and distributing flood information today and Saturday in areas near the St. Vrain River and Left Hand Creek.

The city`s flood information teams, which are to conduct door-to-door visits from about 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. both days, will hand out brochures that include a flood plain map and emergency preparation tips. The crews also will help residents sign up for the city`s emergency notification system.

The city also is advising people to review their homeowner or renter`s insurance policies to make sure they have adequate coverage in the event of a flood.

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Dan Eamon, Longmont`s emergency manager, said the flood information crews will primarily be contacting businesses today. On Saturday, they`ll be visiting several targeted residential areas "to make sure we`ll get people at home," Eamon said.

There are 850 property parcels in the St. Vrain and Left Hand flood plains through the city, "and we`re going to try to hit them all," Eamon said.

The Colorado Water Conservation Board on Thursday encouraged property owners, water recreation enthusiasts, businesses and communities to pay close attention to local waterways in coming days, with stream flows in many northern Colorado rivers increasing with warmer weather.

While a short cool front was expected to enter Colorado today, temperatures are expected to rebound quickly, with a sustained warm period lasting through the middle of next week, according to the state Water Conservation Board. Major northern Colorado rivers are expected to experience higher flows between now and June 10.

Areas of greatest risk in the days and weeks ahead include the mountains and high foothills east of the Continental Divide, state officials said. They noted that in elevations below 7,500 feet east of the Divide, major floods traditionally are caused by heavy rains, and the elevated snow melt is unlikely to cause flooding.

The primary impact to most Front Range metropolitan areas will be trail closings directly alongside such streams and rivers as Clear Creek and Boulder Creek, officials said.

Longmont city officials have said high snowpack, warm temperatures and heavy thunderstorms can combine into a recipe for flooding in areas near Left Hand Creek and the St. Vrain River.

Eamon said the greatest danger in Longmont is runoff combined with a "weather event" such as heavy rain, he said.

Eamon said the last two times Longmont experienced major floods involved such weather events. He said the St. Vrain River has reached flood stage twice here -- in 1919, when the stream flow was 9,400 cubic feet per second, and in 1941, when the flow was 10,500 cfs. There have been 12 other years since 1941 when the St. Vrain`s stream flow was more than 2,000 cfs.

Eamon said the St. Vrain, which now is running at about 200 cfs, has a capacity of 5,000 cfs. A 100-year-flood -- one that statistically can be expected to happen at least once every 100 years -- would have a stream flow of 10,000 cfs.

Wes Lowrie, a Longmont city water resources technician, said last month that the city tracks snowpack, stream flows and weather conditions in the Wild Basin area of Rocky Mountain National Park and Button Rock Dam west of Lyons, areas he said provide good indicators of what to expect.

Longmont officials have urged residents to keep an eye on the sky and listen to the National Weather Service for warnings. City residents can sign up for the Everbridge emergency notification system by going online to ci.longmont.co.us/police/massnotification.htm. People can arrange to get recorded voice messages, text messages or email messages on their land-line or cell telephones.

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